young British woman, named as Catherine M. who is living in Granada, was in court in Vigo on Monday via videoconference. The prosecutor is calling for a two year prison sentence for the woman, claiming she was used as an intermediary in an Internet phishing operation, which saw 2,835 € defrauded from a retired couple from Vigo being sent on to Russia.
Catherine M admitted sending the money to an account in Russia via Western Union, but claimed that she too was a victim, as she was unaware she was taking part in a fraud. She thought she was acting legally as she had obtained a contract by email which paid her a percentage for the money she forwarded.
Her defence lawyer asked the court to consider her immediate repentance when she realised what had happened, as well as her total cooperation with the Police.
Faro de Vigo newspaper reports that the retired couple explained they had never accessed their bank account via internet, as they did not have internet at home, and neither did they have any access codes. They had noticed the missing 2,835 € from their account in October 2007.
The prosecutor keeps the charge that the British woman was part of an international phishing operation and denies that she could have acted in good faith.
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